New Beginnings

this is a discussion within the Saints Community Forum; It's been a very long off-season for all Saints fans. With the offense and special teams playing at such a high level the past few years, the defense being completely overhauled for this campaign, fans have high expectations for our ...

It's been a very long off-season for all Saints fans. With the offense and special teams playing at such a high level the past few years, the defense being completely overhauled for this campaign, fans have high expectations for our team this year. I don't think we will be disapointed. Just remember that this is preseason. Winning these games ranks way down on the list of objectives. Still, it is an exciting time of year. Let's get it on!

O.K. So the team didn\'t impress many with its performance against the Eagles. All of the criticism is warranted to some extent, but should be taken for what was. This was the first preseason game of the year for both teams. It was a glorified practice. These teams meet again in the regular season. A better gauge of what may lie ahead will be when the final horn blows in week one in Seattle. That will be the first REAL test of the sixteen this team will take this year, and even it won\'t tell you everything that can be expected. How about we find a few bright spots to dwell on here. I thought all of our QBs played pretty well, all suffered from dropped balls except for O\'Sullivan. For the limited time Aaron Brooks was in the game, he seemed poised and fresh, accurate and threw with plenty of velocity on his passes. Tory Woodbury also played with confidence, especially for a player only on the roster a couple weeks. O\'Sullivan looked better than he ever has as a Saint. Derrick Lewis caught all but one ball thrown his way, but should have haulled it in as well. Even young Walt Williams showed good vision and speed on the few carries he got late in the game after most of the crowd emptied the dome. (By the way, why does everybody leave early as if they had somewhere important to go? This is entertainment! Nobody leaves the circus halfway through it because they got bored with the clowns performance.) The familiar midseason form from Michael Lewis and John Carney seem to be expected. We came away from this exhibition with limited injury, compared to a team like Green Bay who lost two defensive starters for the year to injury this week. Fan disappointment can be understood anytime your team loses, but don\'t let the illussion of a preseason game dim your excitement for the upcoming season. It is easy to get confused as to what is real this time of year, compared to regular season. You can count on the following: The cost to park is the same. The cost of tickets are the same. The cost of concessions are the same. The real difference is that these games don\'t count. Win or lose, they are erased from memory forever. Don\'t stress. This team, this year, will have plenty of success!